Redesigned From the Ground Up for Superior Performance, Utility and Beauty
The new Definitive StudioMonitor series is the culmination of over 20 years of research and development to create monitor-quality shelf speakers with the perfect balance of high style, utility and most of all performance.

The Most Advanced Technologies for the Most Advanced Performance
If you love great sound you must experience Definitive's StudioMonitor 55. Its combination of racetrack bass radiator technology, and our latest generation patented Balanced Double Surround System (BDSS) bass/midrange drivers, all housed in a rock-solid attractive enclosure, delivers unsurpassed sonic performance.

Each SM 55 features a cast-basket 6-1/2" (17cm) second generation BDSS midrange driver and a 1" (25mm)

The SM55 features a second-generation patented BDSS bass/midrange driver for best-in-class sonic performance

pure aluminum dome tweeter. The driver features Definitive's patented Balanced Double Surround System (BDSS) technology that supports the speaker cone at both the inner and outer edges allowing longer, more linear excursion for greater clarity and finely textured inner detail. A new patent pending Linear Response Waveguide™ smoothes off-axis frequency response and disperses sound over a wider area for crystal clear intelligibility for every listener in the room. The tweeter is a pure aluminum dome, which has been heat-treated to relax the crystal structure and then coated with a ceramic to produce extended highs that reveal nuance and shimmer without a trace of edginess.

The BDSS long-throw bass/midrange driver is pressure coupled to a top mounted racetrack bass radiator to extend and amplify bass frequencies. The total bass radiating area of a SM55 is substantially greater than that of a single 10-inch woofer but with far greater control, definition and speed than a single sluggish large woofer. The StudioMonitor's bass performance is nothing short of astonishing in its depth, detail and musicality.

Watch the Bass Radiator tech video

Slim Elegant Styling with Rock-Solid Performance
All the driver and crossover technology in the world would be wasted if housed in a resonance-prone box. We devoted as much Design and Engineering attention to the styling and construction of the StudioMonitor 55's enclosure as any other part of its design.

The specially contoured high gloss baffle around the drivers and the tapered enclosure sides enhance sound quality by minimizing diffraction distortion. The decorative high gloss grille and cabinet accents add elegance to the matte black tower the way satin piping adds dash to a tuxedo.

But the enclosure's most important job is to be totally inert and resonance free so as not to color the sound. And that's just we did in engineering the SM enclosures. Internal MDF cross braces further stiffen the system. Tap on the side panel of a StudioMonitor 55 enclosure to hear the solid "thud" of a solid, well-damped cabinet instead of the hollow ring of a poorly constructed speaker.

Phase-Coherent Crossover Networks
The crossover network is the real heart of a loudspeaker as it is responsible for perfectly blending together the sound of the various drivers into a musically seamless whole. The sophisticated design used in the SM55 features premium audiophile-grade components such as oversized inductors, Mylar capacitors for linear phase and frequency response. An integrated Zobel network flattens the impedance of the system so that even budget amplifiers will be able to drive the SM55 loudly without distortion (although a premium amplifier will bring out all the performance this remarkable speaker has to offer). This preserves the phase coherence, transient response and dynamic integrity of the signal for absolutely lifelike music and home theater reproduction in your home.

The Proof is in the Listening
This extraordinary speaker sets a new reference standard for high-accuracy loudspeakers in its class and achieves equally superb performance with both music and movies. The StudioMonitor 55 reproduces a silky smooth, incredibly detailed sonic image at lifelike volume levels with a sense of ease which is truly remarkable. Movies and music are reproduced with unequaled purity, transparency and lifelike realism.

Now that you're thoroughly impressed with the technology and passion we've poured into the StudioMonitor 55 it is time to find a stocking dealer near you to audition this remarkable achievement of art and science.

SoundStage HiFi

"The StudioMonitor 55 is a floorstanding speaker masquerading as a bookshelf speaker. "

"The pair of them produced deeper, more voluminous bass than any similarly sized speaker I’ve heard...the result was a speaker that played deeper, and with more authority, than its size and price had led me to expect."

"The StudioMonitor 55 sounded like a much more expensive loudspeaker...[it] doesn’t take a back seat to speakers costing even multiples of its price."

Stereophile

"Definitive Technology has produced a detailed and uncolored bookshelf speaker that provides superb value for the money. And in terms of its midbass definition and high-level dynamic drama with orchestral works, you'd probably have to spend more than $1000/pair to exceed its performance."